As a college football player, schedules are busy. As an NFL player, schedules are even more hectic. For HHS alumnus and soon to be NFL player Landon Turner, that schedule is about to become busier than ever.

In mid-November, Turner, an offensive lineman at UNC, proposed to his girlfriend of three years, Melanie Alvis. Turner’s mother Dawn Womack had been waiting for the call.

“I had a feeling he was going to ask her,” Womack said. “He had already told us that November was the plan and it was right before Thanksgiving so the month was running out. I just kind of put two and two together and realized that he was probably going to ask her that night. And he did.”

With the help of a fellow offensive lineman, Turner was able to capture the moment.

“The day that he was proposing, he had a offensive line meeting where he brought it up, and all of the offensive line guys got really into helping Landon plan his proposal,” Womack said. The group then got a freshman who Turner’s girlfriend, Alvis, would not recognize that could be stealth about taking pictures of the moment.

“It just so happened that that freshman’s parents were in town to take him out to dinner at that same restaurant, so his parents got in on the mix. This freshman lineman and his parents had reconned the area where Landon was proposing. While Landon was at dinner with Melanie, they staged the whole area so that it would look really great.”

After a walk down a Christmas-lit side street, thanks to the freshman and his parents, Turner began the speech that every soon-to-be husband prepares for.

“I was very calm and collected,” Turner said. “I started going through my speech and was getting very sentimental when she interrupted me like ‘Why are you acting so weird?’ Then my flow was off and I had to wing it. I was very nervous but very confident at the same time, it’s hard to explain.”

Once Alvis realized what was happening, it was hard for her to believe.

“She looked at it and kept asking ‘Wait is this real? Is this serious?’ And after assuring her it was and giving her the ring, I had to remind her to say yes,” Turner said.

Alvis was not the only one with a priceless reaction. After the proposal was finished, Turner called his parents to let them know, and their reaction was one of great joy and excitement.

“My parents were overjoyed,” Turner said. “My mom had the best reaction, she screamed for at least 30 seconds.”

As for the wedding, the couple has a short window of when the big day can happen. For players in the NFL, spring is the only time for a player to put football second.

“That’s really the only time for an NFL player to get married because it’s the off season,” Womack said. “His rookie season could go into play-offs in January, and they may go into February, so March and April is when they tend to get married.”

With the NFL draft coming soon, spring of 2017 will be Turner’s first NFL off season, and the soonest time that he will have free time.

“We’re going to spend what time we have before next season starts to get the guest list and venue and such. When the season starts Melanie is going to have to take over most of it, but I’ll still be a part of the process,” Turner said.